I haven't got the whole story yet but a guy here in Cali put together a 338 (?) lightweight fluted long range prairie dog barrel for his TC. On the 10th round the barrel let go, minor cuts to his forearm and the scope was just scratched up a bit.

I'll try to get some more details.

Damn that's spooky!

I always wonder what the next shot you pull the trigger on would be like after an experience like that.

quote:

I always wonder what the next shot you pull the trigger on would be like after an experience like that.

1972 I shot on the Navy Team at Camp Perry using M16s (1st year for them). We were using "Mexican" match ammo we had loaded. 300 yd rapid fire string, my last round failed to eject. Cleared weapon and waited for score. 9 hits and a miss. I challenged it and rescore was 9 hits and a miss. Moved off the line and while behind the line opened the rifle and removed the bolt. Damn there was a bullet in the barrel!!. Called range officer over showed him and got an alibi refire. Bullet came out easily enough with a cleaning rod and rap from my hand. Reshot the string. Score was lower than the one with the miss if I recall correctly. Believe me, you just can't help but think about it!

If you have "Explorer 7", you can go down to the right corner of your screen and enlarge the flicks to 400%.

The amount of steel remaining between the Scope Base "Holes" and the Chamber looks quite thin, but perhaps that is normal. Sure isn't much there to contain a lot of Pressure.

Does the Case look like a full size 8mmRemMag that perhaps was Wildcatted to 338-8mmRemMag?

Thanks for the flicks.

Looks like the watch saved some skin! roger

We need a shutter emotion

Bet it came apart at a flute edge. Fluting depth and not prperly stress relieving a barrel after fluting would be my guess for a cause. I don't flurte barrels.-Rob

Seems to be contagious. That's the second one I've seen recently. Not quite as bad as the first, but not a lot different. Hell of a bulletproof watch!

Brent

other than the shooter, I'd be worried about the watch.

Looks like quite a bit of copper in the barrel near the front rest.

Amazing that there's no blood in either pic!

O.K. More information, it was a 338 UltraMag using medium power level loads. The barrel let go at the deep part of the flute nearest the chamber. The barrel was made by Match Grade Machining (MGM).

The shooter was shooting right handed with his left hand crossed in front of the grip. The wristwatch took the major hit and he had a couple of small pieces of shrapnel in his left forearm.

He has replaced the barrel with a non-fluted MGM barrel and is still shooting the round.

still shooting the frame? looks like it's tweeked pretty bad by the pivot pin. not that i doubt you, but that frame is in rough shape.

quote:

Originally posted by 724wd:
still shooting the frame? looks like it's tweeked pretty bad by the pivot pin. not that i doubt you, but that frame is in rough shape.

That could be my mistake as the guy who posted it on CalpredatorsClub said that the original shooter got a free MGM unfluted barrel and is still shooting the round. I'll correct that in my post.

Did he get a new pair of underwear thrown in too.

Longshot

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
... it was a 338 UltraMag using medium power level loads....

Thanks Frank. I should have noticed the absence of the "Belt".

Do you know if he was using typically Slow Powders which were loaded "below" what the Manuals show for Starting Loads? Maybe the old Secondary Explosion Effect(aka Detonation, Pressure Excursion, etc.)

If he did load "Slow Powders" too low and S.E.E. is what happened, he "might" be able to repeat the experience with the new HEAVY Barrel.

Best of luck to him.

There aree 2 main reasons for this.
1: Stainless steel of infirior quality (unrealistical long splitting, the steel was to brittle, and not tough enoug)
2: To deep fluting in a weak Stainless barrel

quote:

Originally posted by Hot Core:

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
... it was a 338 UltraMag using medium power level loads....

Thanks Frank. I should have noticed the absence of the "Belt".

Do you know if he was using typically Slow Powders which were loaded "below" what the Manuals show for Starting Loads? Maybe the old Secondary Explosion Effect(aka Detonation, Pressure Excursion, etc.)

If he did load "Slow Powders" too low and S.E.E. is what happened, he "might" be able to repeat the experience with the new HEAVY Barrel.

Best of luck to him.

From what I've learned from the shooter's "friend", the shooter was using a load in the middle of the minimum to maximum recommended loads from his reloading manual.

I could be wrong here, but I'll have to agree with Jorgen and Robgunbuilder on the point that the split appears to have started just about an inch or so in front of where the fluting starts. I'll leave the quality of the steel to others. I think the fluting was too deep.

Now, IF there was a bore obstruction, that would change everything.

I have never heard of MGM, but that is just insane when you look at how deep the flutes were and how near the chamber thay started. It makes me question there background and knowledge.

Has anyone ever heard of these guys? Do they know what they are doing and removing this much metal was a terrible mistake, or is this standard practice for them??

scratch that one off the want list

quote:

Originally posted by Marc_Stokeld:
I have never heard of MGM, but that is just insane when you look at how deep the flutes were and how near the chamber thay started. It makes me question there background and knowledge.

Has anyone ever heard of these guys? Do they know what they are doing and removing this much metal was a terrible mistake, or is this standard practice for them??

They're pretty well known to the TC crowd, all they make are Contender barrels. They're located in St George, Utah.

I believe some of them are the guys that used to be Virgin Valley before they shut down. Made good stuff. I would like to know why a flute that close to the chamber. Welp, scratch that custom maker offin my list.

Just had a shooter over on SP that rebarreled an xp he bought. His gunsmith advised him the barrel that was on it had the fluting cut dangerously thin at the chamber.

There are several things noteworthy here.

MGM used to be Virgin Valley. MGM emerged from the bankrupsy/reorg of V.V.

I believe MGM uses Shilen barrels, so likley there is nothing wrong with the steel. It's most likely what was done after it left Shilen.

Shilen says they won't do fluting, and don't guarantee their barrel if it is done by someone else to their barrels. Must be a reason for that.

Finally, I think it is inappropraite to chamber an ultra magnum in an Encore barrel. Just asking for trouble. This is a fine example of the BS spouted by those who over estimate the Encore, IMO.

KB

I have decided that if the factory wont chamber it it may not be safe. Bullberry won't even chamber any of the Short Mags now. Reloads may have contributed if the bullet was seated close to or touching riflings and increased the pressure even more.

quote:

He has replaced the barrel with a non-fluted MGM barrel and is still shooting the round.

The last thing I'd do is use a bbl from a manufacturer that just nearly got me killed!!

Reloader

The case backthrust from any of the short mags, supershort mags or ultramags is just too much for the Encore to handle and that barrel should have never been put on to begin with. The same goes for the fluting on these barrels. Its asking for trouble folks.

quote:

Originally posted by Hot Core:

The amount of steel remaining between the Scope Base "Holes" and the Chamber looks quite thin, but perhaps that is normal. Sure isn't much there to contain a lot of Pressure.

I have bought lots of guns just to try to blow them up. Like Ackley, only 35 years later.

Lots of guns will not blow up in an incremental work up.

Nothing counts like thick steel.

Once the steel is thick enough, it does not matter if it is 100 year old RC25 steel.